Claire's Prayer by Yvonne Cloete Page A

eyeless sockets stared heavenward, unseeingly. Seeing her distress Seth turned Claire into his arms. She burrowed her head against his solid chest, blocking out the gruesome sight. A shiver ran up her spine as she tried to block out the bloody image. Just yesterday, that antelope was probably roaming the ranch. Death was so final, Claire felt, with a shudder. One minute here – then gone. The spark of life could be snuffed out so quickly… Just like it had been for her parents. Claire huddled closer to Seth, taking deep, calming breaths, and reminding herself that a person’s soul and spirit were eternal. She was not just what she saw in front of her now: flesh.
    “It’s okay, Claire,” Seth murmured, trying to soothe her. “This is the law of the wild. Every animal is preyed upon. That’s how the balance of nature is maintained. For some to eat, something else must die. It’s survival of the fittest in the bush.” Seth spoke to her soothingly, his hand rubbing rhythmically up and down her spine.
    Refusing to look at the pitiful sight again, Claire mumbled, “Seth, please can we go now?”
    His arm still around her shoulders, he led her away from the kill. Unable to resist, Claire turned her head and looked back. A few of the vultures were so engorged that they couldn’t even fly. They waddled around, beaks dark with blood. Repulsed, Claire allowed Seth to lead her back to the Land Rover.
    Watching as Claire climbed in, he asked, “You okay now? Don’t let it get to you so much; it’s the way of the bush.” Seth was trying to brush off the incident – after all, he’d seen dozens like it even that year. Nevertheless, he couldn’t help feeling angry that this – this – would be what Claire remembered from her first real trip out into the bush with him. He’d wanted so much for her to see the best of the ranch, for him to help her to see beauty and life in nature, not more death.
    Hearing the concern in his tone Claire answered, in a subdued voice, “I’m okay, Seth. It’s just seeing the animals alive and free one minute… and then seeing a dead one. I understand that something has to die for something else to live. It just seems so cruel. Such a waste.”
    “Hold on,” Seth replied, in pacifying tones. “I want to show you something else.” A few minutes later the road curved sharply to the right and there, within metres, was a large dam. “This is a catchment area for water for the ranch,” Seth explained. “It fills up in the rainy season.” Here , Seth thought, surely we’ll just see beauty .
    Claire stepped down to the ground and looked around her, still taking deep, calming breaths. Lush, short grass grew to the water’s edge, where the hooves of many animals had churned up the last few feet of the bank into a muddy mess. And then, like an endless, perfect mirror, the calm surface of the dam reflected the clear blue sky as far as Claire could see. Her eyes widened; the sight seemed all the more magnificent for what had come before it. Amidst the harsh realities of life, Claire was suddenly reminded, God always revealed his love through the beauty of his creation.
    Leaving the Land Rover and approaching her, Seth snapped Claire out of her trance. “Why don’t you help yourself to some tea while I check out the pump?” he asked, handing her a flask. “Tony told me it’s been playing up lately and I’d better sort it out – it pumps water to the reservoir for the lodges.” Claire peered towards the patch of trees Seth had indicated. Placed strategically amongst them, almost invisible, was the pump house. Claire now also saw that there were a few tables and benches dotted around the dam, shaded by wide, thatched canopies. “We can do some fishing at the next dam; it’s well stocked with bream,” Seth said over his shoulder, as he walked away. “That okay with you?”
    Pouring tea into the fragile plastic mug, Claire answered steadily. “My dad and I used to go trout